The Dark Side of his Heart
by I Dream of Scotty
Summary: "I guess you never really know what's in a person's heart." Jane begins to act strangely while he and Lisbon investigate the murder of a teenager with associations to the occult. One thing leads to another and Lisbon soon discovers that he has been hiding some surprising dark truths. Jisbon.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This story is set in the time they were working at in the CBI. Please read and review :-)

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

Patrick Jane had to fight a wave of nausea as he stood beside his colleagues at the crime scene a little after 3pm in the afternoon. There before them lay the body of a once wealthy Sacramento teenager, now a disfigured corpse on the ground. His hand went to his stomach which was currently churning as he stood beside Cho who was listening to the coroner give an estimated time of death as sometime after midnight that day. When he had finished Patrick turned to Cho and said, "I think I'm gonna take a walk, get some air."

Cho raised one eyebrow at him, "But there's plenty of air here, we're outside."

Just then another wave of nausea hit him and his hand flew to his mouth as he turned and quickly walked away.

"Hey where did Jane go?" Lisbon asked Cho a few minutes later.

"He went for a walk in that direction." He told her pointing towards the luxury mansion behind them.

"He didn't look so good this morning," she said, "think he's coming down with something."

Cho nodded, "He did look a little green. Maybe he went to make himself some tea, you know Jane."

Lisbon nodded, a small smile on her lips. "I better go see if he's okay. I want you and Van Pelt to continue to canvass the area." He nodded his acknowledgement to her and with that she began to walk towards the house in search of her consultant.

When she got to the entrance there were uniformed officers everywhere. She flashed them her badge and they let her go inside without fuss. She looked around at the opulent surroundings as she walked over to the kitchen but could not see Jane anywhere. "Jane?" she called but got no answer. "Jane!" she tried again. After getting no response she continued to wander around the house. As she entered the large living room she saw Wayne Rigsby standing by the fireplace talking to a young woman who couldn't have been more than fifteen. She approached the two of them.

"Hey boss," Rigsby greeted, "This is Alex Waltham, she's the victim's neighbor." He informed her.

"Hi, I'm Agent Teresa Lisbon," Lisbon greeted the young woman who was tightly clutching at the sleeve of her cardigan.

"Hello." She replied, letting go of her sleeve to shake the agent's hand.

"She was just telling me about the victim." Rigsby explained.

"Yeah," she began, now looking at Lisbon, "it's like I was telling agent Rigsby, Callum had a party last night, it was a small thing, just a few of his close friends."

"Were you there?" She asked but miss Waltham shook her head. "No, not really...I mean Callum invited me but…"

"But what?" Lisbon asked.

"Well...I knew who else was coming."

"What do you mean?" Rigsby asked, taking notes.

Miss Waltham went silent for a moment, debating whether to say anything further.

"Go on," Lisbon prompted.

"Well, let's just say they're not the kind of people I would feel comfortable hanging out with."

"Were they into anything sketchy?" Rigsby asked but she shook her head again.

"No...not really, I mean they aren't like drug dealers or anything...at least I don't think they are. They're just a little off, you know?"

"Off like how?" Lisbon asked, her curiosity growing.

"You know, they're kinda into weird things, like the occult and stuff like that."

"The occult?" Lisbon asked, "You mean like satanic rituals?"

"I don't know, maybe. I never spent enough time around them to find out, but they were always talking about death, it creeped me out!"

"So you knew the victim well miss Waltham?" Rigsby asked, "You were friends?"

"You can call me Alex." She said. "We all go to the same school. Callum's in my English class." She paused then, "I mean he _was _in my English class. We used to talk. God I can't believe he's dead!"

"Was Callum into the occult too?" Lisbon could tell that this girl was really nervous talking about that subject.

"I don't think so, at least he never told me that he was but I guess you never really know what's in a person's heart. He wasn't creepy like some of his friends, he just seemed normal, you know?"

Lisbon nodded. "Can you give me the names of these friends who were at the party last night?"

Alex hesitated.

"It's alright," Lisbon assured.

"Kevin Montgomery, Stacey Richards, Brian Colby and Leighton Cruz." She told them, "At least that's all I knew about." She paused and then added, "Stacey and Brian were cool but there's something not right about the other two."

"You think one of them might have killed him?"

"I don't know agent Lisbon," she told her.

"Thank you for your time miss Waltham. If you think of anything else please give us a call." She handed Alex he CBI card and then walked out of the living room; Rigsby followed behind. They stopped just inside the main entrance. "Try and track down those four kids and bring them in." She told him.

"Yes boss."

"I'm going to try to find Jane."

"I think I saw him go upstairs." Rigsby said.

"Thanks." She told him and then began to head in that direction.

"Jane?" She called as she climbed the dark mahogany staircase, "Jane are you up here?" Still she got no reply. Once she had reached the top of the stairs she turned right and began to make her way down a long hallway which led to three bedrooms and two bathrooms. "Jane where are you?" She noticed that the first bedroom on her right was open so she peered inside. "Jane?" This floor of the house was much more quiet compared to downstairs. All the officers and forensics team were busy in the garden where the victim was found, they hadn't begun to comb through this floor as yet. Lisbon continued on to the next bedroom when she heard a crash from the opposite end of the hallway. Her hand quickly went to her gun and she quickly made her way towards the sound. Just as she approached the top of the stairs she saw a teenager come running out of another bedroom and towards her, blood all over his clothes. "Stop!" she ordered but he ignored her, looked right passed her and continued running till he reached the stairs. He stood there for a second before trying to reach for the bannister. He missed. Then his legs gave way and he fell down the stairs until he stopped at the bottom, his body lifeless. Lisbon stared at him in shock for a second or two before she heard another sound coming from the same room the kid had run out of. Noticing that the teenager was now being tended to by some police officers downstairs, she advanced towards the source of the sound; her gun drawn, her senses on high alert. As she approached the doorway she heard a male voice but she couldn't make out what he was saying, she listened and realized that he was whispering something. She took a breath and entered the room but her heart almost stopped at what she saw before her.

Patrick Jane was lying on the floor, covered in blood.

"Jane!" She called as she ran toward him, "Oh my God Jane!" She knelt down beside him.

"Boss!" Rigsby said as he too entered the room, "What happened?"

"I don't know, he's alive but his heart rate is erratic. Get those paramedics up here now." She ordered and Rigsby did as he was asked.

xxxxxxx

Jane awoke some three hours later in the hospital. As he opened his eyes he instantly felt something warm squeeze his hand. He blinked, trying to clear his vision and after four attempts he finally saw the silhouette of a woman. He tried to speak, tried to move but found that he couldn't do either. "Jane?" He heard the woman say. "Jane can you hear me?" He thought he recognized her voice but his mind was so foggy at that moment that he couldn't remember...much of anything really. He tried to think. His name is….no good, it just wouldn't come back to him. "Jane?" She said again and as his eyes finally began to focus he saw that the woman with dark brown hair and a concerned look on her face was in fact talking to him. As he saw her he couldn't help smiling. There was something about seeing this particular woman that made him happy inside.

"Hey," he croaked; his voice affected by the parchness of his throat. He felt the woman squeeze his hand a little tighter.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him.

He stared into her eyes for a moment and then something came to him "Lisbon."

"I'm here. You're going to be alright."

Suddenly a flood of memory hit him like a tidal wave and everything became clearer in his mind. He found the strength slowly come back to him as he tried to lift himself up into a sitting position. "Wh...what happened?" He asked.

"The doctor said there was no physical trauma but you have a slight fever, he said you must have fainted." She explained.

"Blood." He said, "I remember blood...all over me?" He looked at her questioningly.

Lisbon paused before saying. "Do you remember anyone else in the room with you?"

Jane thought for a moment. "Yes, a boy, maybe fifteen years old. I wanted to ask him about the murder but….I can't remember what happened after that."

"It looks as if he took his own life, at least tried to. The blood we found on you was arterial spatter; he had cut himself. He would have died of exsanguination if he hadn't fallen down the stairs and broken his neck."

"He's dead?" he asked.

"Yes." She confirmed.

"Why did he try to kill himself?" He asked.

"We don't know yet. The girl who lives next door; Alex Waltham has identified him as Leighton Cruz. He was a friend of the victim. We think he might have had something to do with the murder, maybe he felt guilty and that's why he did it. We're trying to get in contact with his parents now. But you don't need to worry about that right now. The doctor has cleared you to leave so I'm going to take you home."

xxxxxxx

After getting dressed Jane followed Lisbon to the hospital parking lot and they both got into her car. She started the engine and began to drive towards the motel that Jane was staying at but part way through the journey Jane began to feel faint once more. When they stopped at a red light Lisbon could see that he was turning pale. She looked out of the window at the darkened sky - it was getting late and the motel was still another half hour's drive away. As the lights turned green she made a decision and took the next right and drove toward her own apartment. When they arrived there five minutes later Lisbon helped Jane out of the car. Her arm around his waist for support, she helped him inside and sat him down onto the couch. She put her hand on his forehead, he was still warm. "Stay here." She told him and then went into the kitchen. When she came back she handed him a towel which was wet with cold water. "Here, put this on your head and lie down for a bit okay?" Her voice was soft and gentle and Jane found himself begin to relax at her touch. She helped him out of his shoes and he lay down on the couch. He fell asleep almost instantly.

It was about two hours later when he woken up again. Lisbon was sitting in an armchair next to him, watching him as he sat up. "How are you feeling?" She asked.

"Headache," he said.

"I left some Tylenol for you over there." She told him, pointing to the coffee table. "Take some. I'll go make you some tea." She smiled as he nodded and then walked off towards the kitchen. She was just about to boil some water when she heard a crash come from the living room. She put the electric kettle down and rushed into the living room. "Jane are you okay?"

Her consultant looked up at her, a sheepish looked on his face. "I went to reach for the glass but my hands were shaking a little, it slipped and broke. I'm sorry Lisbon."

Relief washed over her. "It's okay Jane, it's okay. Accidents happen." She went over to the broken shards on the floor and began to carefully pick up all the bigger pieces.

"Here let me help." He said.

She was about to pick up a shard lying next to Jane's arm on the coffee table, when he moved and the piece he was holding cut her finger, causing it to bleed a little. "Ow!" she said and dropped the piece she was holding.

"Oh my God Lisbon, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," She said and then stood up to get a band aid. Jane stood too and reached out for her hand. "Let me see." He said quietly.

Lisbon watched as he took her hand, examining it. He gently ran his index finger along hers and then tenderly rubbed her palm with his thumb. "Doesn't look like a deep cut." He said and just as she was about pull her hand away his grip tightened a little as he moved her finger toward his mouth.

Lisbon was stunned as his lips parted and he put her finger into his mouth, his eyes fixed on hers. She watched as his pupils dilated with desire and her heart rate quickened when she felt him gently suck the digit. It took a few seconds before she found her voice. "Jane." She said and she pulled her hand back. She looked at him for a moment before walking swiftly away. She walked into the kitchen and applied a band aid to her finger. Then she picked up the dustpan and brush to sweep the rest of the pieces up. She took a deep breath and then walked back into the living room but almost dropped what she was holding. She watched as Jane dipped his finger in the droplets of blood on the coffee table and put it into his mouth. "Jane," she asked. "What the hell are you doing?"


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who reviewed/favorited/followed. Your support means so much to me. :-)

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

Jane stopped and looked at her for a moment, unsure as to why she looked so upset. "I thought I'd help you clean up. Blood can leave a nasty stain on wood." He told her and then repeated the same action for another droplet of her blood.

"Jane stop. Just stop doing that." Lisbon told him, trying to keep the shock and revulsion out of her voice. She wanted to move but found herself frozen to the spot.

Jane searched her eyes, "Lisbon, are you alright?" he asked and then stood up.

Suddenly Lisbon's feet began to move and she took a few steps back from him.

"Lisbon, what's wrong? You seem upset?" He asked, genuinely concerned.

Lisbon looked at him for a moment and then tried to force a smile. "Is this a prank you're pulling on me?" She asked.

He gave her a questioning look. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on Jane, you're winding me up aren't you? You're trying to freak me out."

"Lisbon I don't know what you mean?" He told her.

"The blood?" She clarified.

"Yes?"

"You were tasting my blood."

A faint smile ghosted his lips for a brief second and then was gone. "I know."

"Why?" She asked.

"I...I'm not sure, it just felt like the right thing to do." He told her simply.

Her face contorted slightly in confusion, "The right thing to do?" She repeated his words.

He thought about what he did and tried to find an explanation. "I just didn't want to let it go to waste."

Lisbon felt the strength in her legs begin to give way and she blindly reached behind her for the arm of the sofa. When she found it she took a step back and sat down.

Jane saw the shaky way she moved and got up from the floor to sit beside her, leaving a few inches between them. He turned his body to look at her. "Lisbon," he began softly, "are you okay?" She didn't answer him, caught up in her own thoughts. "You're not getting sick too are you?" He reached up to touch her forehead when she suddenly snapped back to reality and flinched at the sight of his hand, instantly cursing herself for doing so.

"No, no I'm not sick. Guess I was just more tired than I realized." She lied and then stood up. "I think I'm gonna turn in for the night. You should get some sleep too."

Jane watched as she quickly turned around and walked up the stairs. Once she had disappeared from view his eyes caught on the dustpan and brush and he picked them up and began sweeping.

Lisbon was in her bathroom, washing her face at the sink. Once he had rinsed all the soap off she reached for a towel and began to pat her face dry. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, trying to relax the muscles in her jaw but she wasn't having much luck. She had to admit that Jane had caught her off guard a few minutes ago but if she was completely honest with herself it wasn't so much the blood tasting that concerned her, it was more the fact that he didn't seem to think it was unusual. She shook her head and tried to think of something else. Putting the towel on the heater to dry she looked back down at the sink again and cleaned off all the remaining soap which had splashed onto the taps. Once she had finished she looked back up again and almost screamed at what she saw. "Jane!" she said when she saw his reflection behind her in the mirror. "You scared the life out of me!" She turned around to face him.

"I'm sorry Lisbon, I didn't mean to frighten you." His face was tinged with concern. "You seem a little jumpy tonight."

"I'm fine," she said, although more for her own sake. She looked at him, "Jane, how are you feeling?"

"I think my headache is getting better. Still feel a little tired though."

"You should be sleeping."

He smiled a little, touched by her concern for him. As he stood there, looking into the dark emeralds that were her eyes he couldn't help but feel a wave of affection for this caring woman before him. Slowly he reached up and entwined his fingers with a lock of her silky soft hair. He noticed the slight shiver as his hand brushed against her temple and his smiled grew a little wider. "That's my Lisbon," he began, his voice a soft whisper, "always looking out for me." He paused, "Even when I don't deserve it."

Lisbon swallowed. "What do you mean you don't deserve it?" She too was whispering.

"I think you know." He told her, his eyes bore deeply into hers and she suddenly felt a little vulnerable. He took a step closer, pleased when she didn't step away. "Lorelei." His breath was warm as it ghosted across her face. He watched her closely, noticing the hint of sadness that flickered in her eyes and the subtle downturn of her mouth at the mention of that name. "I know what it did to you. I am sorry Lisbon, I hope that someday you'll believe me."

Lisbon could no longer remain under his intense gaze and turned away from him, letting his hand fall softly from her hair. She was once again facing the mirror, shocked to find that her eyes looked as though they would spill her tears at any second. She reached out to turn the tap back on when Jane, who was still standing behind her, caught her hand mid-reach and held it in his. She froze, not daring to face him again. His caressed her fingers with his own before bringing her hand up to his face. He looked at the Band-Aid on her finger and he held it between his index finger and thumb.

"It was sweet." He told her, his voice tender, "You have sweet blood Teresa, did you know that?"

Lisbon shivered again at such an intimate use of her first name. She tried to ignore the way body was reacting to him; the familiar thumping lower down mirroring her beating heart.

She cleared her throat, trying her best to think straight. "No," she began, "but I don't make it a habit to sample my own blood, or anyone else's for that matter." She turned around, her hand still held in his. "Jane what's wrong with you?"

He studied her face again. "Lisbon," He began, "are you afraid of me?"

"No." She whispered but Jane saw right through her.

"You're lying." He said with equal measures of shock and surprise. "Lisbon?"

"I think you're still feverish, maybe you should just lie down for a little while, at least till your fever breaks." She tried to change the subject but Jane was too intrigued to let this go.

"My dear," he began, "I assure you, you have nothing to be afraid of."

She began to walk toward the door when he took hold of her arms and gently held her in front of him. "Look at me Lisbon, you know I would never hurt you." He then looked down at her hand and laced his fingers with hers, focusing on the Band-Aid. "At least not intentionally." He raised their joined hands to his face inhaling deeply. "You heal quickly." He commented and she at once pulled her hand away from him. "Though I really shouldn't be surprised. You're a strong woman, within and without. I've always admired that about you." He lowered his eyes from hers. "I just came to tell you that I cleaned up downstairs, so you don't need to worry about that. I'm going to get some sleep now so I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight Lisbon." He didn't wait for her to answer, he just turned around and walked back down the stairs leaving Lisbon speechless.

She was up early the following morning. Lisbon checked on him after getting out of bed. As she slowly walked down the stairs she peeked into the living room to find him still asleep on her couch. She smiled, pleased that he had slept through the night. After showering she got dressed and went over to the kitchen to make herself some breakfast. Just as she had left some coffee to brew she heard him stir. "Good morning." She greeted him as he blinked away his sleep.

"Good morning Lisbon." He said, his voice still hoarse from sleep.

She walked over to him smiling but as she got closer her smile began to fade. "How do you feel?" She asked, noting that his forehead still looked a little clammy.

"About the same as last night." He replied and tried to hoist himself into a sitting position.

Lisbon reached out to touch his forehead. "Your head still feels warm. Stay here, I'll make you some tea and toast."

"I'm not hungry." He told her, attempting to stand.

"Jane, don't be stubborn, you need to keep your strength up."

"Stop fussing woman," he began, "I'm fine…" but as soon as he tried to stand he felt his legs begin to wobble. Lisbon reached out to steady him.

"You're not fine, sit." She ordered and he grudgingly obliged. She walked over to the kitchen counter and picked up her phone and while putting two slices of bread in the toaster she called Van Pelt. "Hi Grace, I'm gonna take to a personal day."

xxxxxxxxx

With Lisbon absent, Cho took lead in the interrogation room. They had found Kevin Montgomery and had brought him in for questioning, however he was proving to be somewhat uncooperative. "Kevin," Cho said for the third time. "If you don't talk we're gonna have to charge you with obstruction. Is that what you want?"

Kevin just looked at Cho and rolled his eyes. "Do what you want man, it won't stick; my dad is the brother in law of the attorney general." He then proceeded to cross his arms in front of his chest and leaned back in his chair.

"That's very impressive." Cho said, "So is your record; vandalism, disorderly conduct, sexual harassment…"

"Hey that charge was totally bogus!" He interrupted. "That bitch just wanted to squeeze some money out of my family."

"I'll bet." Cho said flatly. "The thing is, you're looking to add a murder charge to this list."

"Murder? Man, I didn't kill Callum!" He said.

"Right now you and your friends are our best suspects, so do yourself a favor, tell us about the party that night."

He sighed and then relented, "There's nothing to tell. He invited us over, we hung out, then I went home."

"You and two others, right? A Brian Colby and a Stacey Richards."

"Yeah." He replied.

"Was there anyone else there that night? Where were his parents?"

"His parents are out of town, business thing I guess."

"Tell me about what happened at the party." Cho continued.

"It was pretty tame, we all cut out at about eleven." He laughed, "Brian and Leighton got into this debate about the afterlife...when those two got talking that's it."

"Did they argue?" He asked.

"Nah, they just go on and on, they both want to be right." Kevin informed him.

"And what about Callum? What was he doing?"

"I don't know, last I saw he was talking to Stacey, that was just before I left."

"Tell me about Leighton Cruz. Was he violent?" Cho asked.

"Not exactly, he was the kinda guy who would just argue a lot, you know, sometimes he'd give you a look, like he was trying to put a curse on you."

"We hear that you and your friends were into the occult. Do you think it's possible Leighton did something to Callum?"

"Leighton?" Kevin thought about that for a moment. "Maybe. And I don't know who told you that but we're not into the occult. We like horror films, that's all. Leighton was into them in a big way, he would get all depressed and cut himself. He wasn't suicidal or nothing, just like to scar himself. Thought it made him stronger. He wanted to have everything his way and he would get weird if someone crossed him, but killing? I don't know. He'd beat you up real good, did that to Stacey once."

"Stacey Richards." Cho clarified and he nodded.

"They were kinda together, hooked up a few times." He leaned forward, his voice a little quieter now, "If he hit her that night, wouldn't put it past Callum to jump in and try to save her."

Cho thanked him for his time and then let him go before calling Lisbon with an update.

xxxxxxxx

Lisbon had just finished cleaning up after dinner. She was drying her hands on a towel in the kitchen when she heard him walk up behind her. "That was delicious." Jane told her. "I never knew you were so good at cooking."

Lisbon smiled, "As I've told you before, you only think you know everything about me."

Jane laughed, "So it would appear." He paused before saying, "Thank you Lisbon. For everything, it...it means a lot to me." His voice grew quieter at his next words, "More than you'll ever know." His breath tickled the back of her neck, making her freeze momentarily. "You didn't have to do this you know."

"It was just fish," she said, shrugging. She could feel Jane take a step closer to her, the heat of his body penetrating the thin blouse she was wearing and radiating onto her back.

"You know what I mean. You've gone out of your way to take care of me." His fingers gently pulled back the hair that had fallen forward about her shoulders. He put his hands on her arms and she felt her heart rate jump as he lightly pressed his chest into her. "You're always looking out for me." She felt the fingers of his right hand trace the curve of her neck, causing her to quiver at his touch. "Lisbon," he said softly as he pulled her closer and whispered "Teresa." At the mention of her name her eyes flew shut; suddenly overwhelmed with desire. The next thing she felt was Jane's hands on her shoulder, his fingers brushing aside the fabric of her blouse, exposing her shoulder.

"Jane." She whispered, trying to regain control of herself but then his lips were on her skin as he placed delicate kisses to her shoulder. She hummed with delight as he slowly made his way up to her neck, his kisses becoming more intense as he began to suck and lick her skin. A surge of pleasure ignited within her as she pushed herself backwards into his body. Then suddenly Jane's grip on her body tightened and her eyes flew open as he bit into her vein.

Lisbon woke up with a start, covered in sweat, her heart and mind racing. It took her several seconds to realize that she had been dreaming. As things slowly began to come into focus she began to calm down. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand - 3.36am. She slowly sat up and reached for a glass of water.

"Did you have a nightmare?" A voice asked from somewhere inside the room. Teresa scrambled to switch the bedside lamp on and when she did she gasped in shock. Patrick Jane was standing by the window staring back at her. He had been watching her all along.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I must say that I am so happy for all the support for this fic; you guys are amazing! Thank you :-)

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

Lisbon blinked a couple of times, trying to make sure that she wasn't still dreaming. It took her a moment to recover her breath but her heart continued to race; stunned at his presence there. "Wh..what are you doing here?" She asked, her voice shaking a little.

Jane didn't answer her but moved slowly towards the bed. Lisbon drew the covers up a little higher in response. "Jane."

"Shhh, it's okay." He whispered as he sat down and held the glass of water for her to take. She reached for the glass and took a sip. The cold water was a stark contrast to the heat she felt inside her body. When she had finished, he took the glass from her still-trembling hand and put it back down on the nightstand. "Breathe, Lisbon, it's okay now." He told her but as he touched her arm he felt her body tense up.

"Why are you here?" She asked again, barely able to meet his eyes.

"I couldn't sleep." He told her.

"That doesn't explain why you're here, in my bedroom Jane." She was pleased her voice was slowly returning to normal, her heart beginning to follow suit.

"I got up to go to the bathroom when I heard you talking in your sleep. I was worried."

She scrunched her face up a little at that. "I don't talk in my sleep."

Jane smiled, "I'm afraid you do my dear. You wanna tell me what it was about?"

"What?"

"Your nightmare." He spoke softly, trying to calm her down.

"Oh," she replied and then looked down at the covers. Jane noticed with interest, the slight blush on her face and the way she was avoiding his gaze and couldn't help but smile a little. She had had a naughty dream. He thought but was confused as to why she had woken up in such a state of panic. "If you were worried I was having a nightmare, why didn't you just wake me up? Why were you just standing there…watching me?"

He heard her words but at that moment Patrick Jane's attention was solely focused on the way the vein in her neck was softly pulsating. It was hypnotic, beautiful; he found he could not look away. The way the soft light from the bedside lamp illuminated her milky skin made him bite his lip in want.

"Jane." Lisbon said again and he snapped to attention. He looked at her, his expression asking her to repeat the question. "Why were you watching me?"

"You have a beautiful view of the moon from here," He said.

Lisbon shuffled a little further away from him then, uneasy at the fact that he was clearly avoiding her question. She looked at him cautiously "Jane, are you feeling alright?" she asked.

"I'm feeling fine Lisbon, a lot better. I think your nursing skills have been just what I needed. You have a very kind and patient bedside manner. Did you get that from your mother? She was a nurse wasn't she?" He asked.

She shook her head at his evasion, "I'm glad," she began, "but I mean are you okay? You've been acting a little…" she paused when her eyes caught on something. "Is your lip bleeding?" she asked.

Her words made Jane suddenly aware of the mild stinging sensation on his lower lip and he automatically licked at the spot, tasting his own blood. Lisbon's thoughts immediately turned to her dream as she noted the way his eyes seemed to light up as he did so and she wondered if she was imagining it. Her hand instinctively went to her neck. "I think I should just try to go back to sleep now." She told him, already beginning to sink further into the covers.

"You want me to stay here till you fall asleep?" He asked.

"I'll be fine, you should sleep too." She told him.

Jane lingered on the bed for a moment, looking at her; a deep longing in his eyes. Then he finally nodded, stood up and walked out of the room, making Lisbon sigh in relief. Once the door was closed she shut her eyes and sank back down into the bed. She reached out, turned off the light and tried to fall back asleep again. She had to admit to herself that a part of her was a little disappointed that he didn't put up a fuss about leaving. She shook the thought from her head, blaming her sleep-deprived brain for thinking such thoughts. It was another half hour before she fell asleep again.

Jane made his way to the bathroom, his lip was still stinging. After switching on the light he sat on the edge of the tub. His knees were trembling slightly. He took a few deep breaths to try and calm his racing heart. He had thought that the fever had finally broken but he was suddenly feeling very weak again. After a few more deep breaths he decided to walk over to the sink and splash some water on his face but as he walked up to the mirror, his eyes caught on his cut lip, noticing a slight trail of dried blood leading toward his chin. He opened the tap and ran his hand under the warm water, the temperature helping his mind relax. After soaking his fingers he brought them to his chin in order to clean off the blood but when he looked in the mirror again he stopped. His eyes once more were focused on the little cut. He moved his finger over it as memories of Lisbon's neck came flooding back into his mind. In his bravest moments he would sometimes dare to think about caressing her neck, her face, her lips. Now and again he would wonder what it would feel like to hold her and hold her in his arms. The attraction had always been there but he had surprised himself at the way he had reacted to her tonight; he was usually good at controlling himself around her. Jane had become so distracted with his thoughts that he didn't realize he was pressing harder on the cut and it had begun to bleed again. "Damn!" He cursed as he moved his hand back to the water to wash off the blood. As he was doing so, his tongue moved automatically to the cut and he licked at it. Jane suddenly froze as a powerful sensation took over his body, for a second only, and then was gone. He turned off the water and looked at his lip in the mirror as he licked at the cut once more. The metallic taste sizzled on his tongue as his pupils dilated and suddenly his body stopped shaking.

xxxxx

Lisbon was glad when she was called to a crime scene the next morning. She had had a rough night, thoughts of Jane haunted her mind both while she was awake and in her dreams too. She hadn't had any more nightmares after that but the dreams she did have were equally disconcerting for they too cast Jane in the lead role. They were full of heat and lust, brought on by the intensity of his gaze as he sat on the bed with her that night.

As she walked down the stairs she noticed that her couch was empty; the blanket, half fallen to the floor. She looked around the living room, her eyes searching for his blond curls but she couldn't find him. "Jane?" she called softly but there was no answer. She then heard movement upstairs and the shower being turned on. She smiled, thinking that he must be feeling better today if he was moving around again.

She walked into the kitchen and began to pour herself some coffee. "I'm gonna need a lot of this today." She told herself as a wave of tiredness swept over her. She took a sip of the caffeinated beverage and then proceeded to make herself some toast. She spread the butter on the warm bread and as she watched it melt she was reminded of a dream she had last night involving Jane and waffles. She quivered a little at the memory of his touch. It had felt so real.

"Morning Lisbon." Came a cheerful voice from behind her, startling her so much that she almost dropped the knife. "Woah! Careful there, you could hurt yourself with this thing!" Jane moved to her side and held her hand gently as he took the knife from her, setting it down on the counter.

"Jane!" she began, "You scared the life out of me. I didn't even hear you."

He grinned, "Sorry."

"What are you smiling at?" She asked, now feeling a little self conscious at the way he was looking at her.

"Did you know you turn a lovely shade of crimson when you blush?"

"Hush." She said and picked up the knife to continue making her breakfast.

Jane held her hand again, his fist holding hers firmly as he looked at the knife. He leaned his head closer to her ear and spoke softly. "Be careful Lisbon, I don't want you to get hurt." He then let go of her hand and walked silently toward the couch.

Lisbon stood at the counter, her body throbbing with desire as she stared at her clenched hand. The heat of Jane's touch had set her mind aflame and she suddenly wished she had something stronger than coffee to help get her through the day.

xxxxx

Lisbon arrived at Leighton's Cruz's house about half an hour later. "What have we got?" She asked as she walked up to the front of the house and to Van Pelt, her coffee in hand.

"We managed to speak to Leighton's mother last night on the phone, she's in Boston on business but she's flying in this afternoon. She told us we can have a look around his bedroom."

"Did you find anything" Van Pelt nodded and indicated that she should follow. Van Pelt led Lisbon up the stairs and into a lavishly decorated bedroom. Lisbon looked around as they entered, noting the state of disarray. As she was looking at the various shelves on the bookcase, her eyes caught on a framed photograph. She walked toward it and picked it up. It was a picture of Leighton Cruz and two other teenagers; one male and one female. Lisbon opened up the frame and took out the picture. When she turned it over she found some writing on the back. _Me, Brian and Stacey. 27th August 2013. _

Lisbon carefully put the picture back. "Looks like a normal kid's room." She said, "I guess I was kinda expecting pentagrams on the floor or something."

Van Pelt looked the older woman in the eyes, "Careful what you wish for." She said and then walked over to the expensive-looking wooden desk which was situated near the big bay window on the opposite side of the room. As Lisbon followed her she noticed that there was a red and brown covered book on the top. "This was his journal." Van Pelt explained as she picked it up. "It was kept hidden at the back of his closet." She handed the book over to Lisbon. "Have a read of the final entry."

Lisbon gave Van Pelt a questioning look before opening up the journal and began to read. "The party tonight will be the ultimate test, I only hope I am strong enough to see this through. I've know all along that sacrifices need to be made and I thought I was ready for this but the closer the time comes the more nervous I feel. I'm scared of this darkness inside. I feel it consume me more and more each day and I'm afraid of what it will turn me into if I ever truly let go." Lisbon looked up at Van Pelt then, "Sacrifices?"

"Could have been talking about Callum?" Van Pelt suggested.

"It's a start, I think it might be a good idea to read the rest of this, try and find out what was going on inside his head." Van Pelt nodded. Just then Lisbon's cell phone began to ring. "Lisbon," she answered; it was Cho.

"We got an anonymous call about an hour ago, said that there was a body in McKinley park, I'm here now with Rigsby."

"Did you find anything?" Lisbon asked.

"We spent a long time looking for it, was starting to think it was a hoax but yeah, we found it. Caucasian female, between fourteen and seventeen years. We don't have an ID on her yet but get this; her feet and hands were bound and her throat was slit. She's dressed in an all white dress, like a wedding dress from some gothic novel. It looks like it could have been part of some kind of ritual."

Lisbon paused a second, processing what she had been told, "You think this could be connected to our case?"

"Don't know, maybe."

"Could you send me a picture of the victim?" She asked. Cho agreed and they hung up. A few seconds later Lisbon received a text. She opened up the image file and looked at the dead girl's face.

Van Pelt looked at the stunned expression on her boss' face and asked, "Is everything okay?"

"Cho and Rigsby just found another body in McKinley park." She handed her phone over to Van Pelt to have a look at. "It's Stacey Richards."

"Wasn't she a friend of the victim, Callum?"

"Yes, she was." Lisbon confirmed. "Cho said her hands and feet were tied and she was wearing a white Gothic wedding dress."

Van Pelt's eyes widened, "You don't think that's the sacrifice Leighton was talking about in his journal, do you?"

Lisbon stared down at the journal in her hands. "I don't know, but this case just got a whole lot creepier."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thanks again for all the favorites/follows/reviews, your support for this story means so much to me.

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

"What are you reading?" Jane asked as he walked passed Lisbon who was sitting on her couch in her living room.

"Leighton Cruz's journal." She told him.

"Anything interesting?"

She sighed sadly, "He was a very troubled kid. Issues with his weight, unpopular at school, drug and alcohol abuse; seems like his self-esteem was practically nonexistent."

"Hmmm." Jane said and Lisbon looked up to find him walking around the room.

"Jane, what are you doing?"

He continued to pace a little longer before he stopped, lost in thought. "Did you know that your bathroom window directly faces your neighbor's?"

"Yes," she began, amused, "I've lived here for a while now, I have noticed that."

"We need to get you some shutters. The blinds you have aren't enough." He paused, "And for the rest of the house too."

"Jane, what are you talking about?"

"It's too open, too…vulnerable."

Lisbon put the journal down on the couch. "Vulnerable?" She laughed, "Jane, this is a decent neighborhood."

"Meh, doesn't mean anything. Even in the nicest places there are troubled people lurking in the shadows. Look what happened to Stacey Richards."

"Jane, sit down for a minute."

He ignored her and carried on pacing. When he came to a window he stopped and glanced out. "You've made a lot of enemies doing this job, some really bad people out there."

"Yes, and thankfully they're all locked up."

"They have friends." Jane countered.

"Jane, please sit down; you're starting to worry me."

He looked over to her, seeing the concern in her eyes and he did as she asked, sitting close to her so that their knees touched. "Don't worry Lisbon, it's going to be okay, I promise." She reached out and placed her hand upon his forehead to check his temperature but as she was about to remove it again, her eyes met his and she froze for a moment, as if locked in a trance. "Lisbon," He whispered, his warm breath caressing her lips like an ethereal kiss. She quivered imperceptibly. "what are you doing?"

"I think you still might be sick," she told him, absently. Her mind felt like it was floating, her words were faint echoes in the distance. She barely registered what she had said.

He smiled softly, affectionately, as he raised his hand to hers. He grasped it gently and brought it down onto his knees. "I'm fine Lisbon, I'm not sick anymore."

She scrunched up her face at that, "I'm not so sure, you're acting strangely."

He paused a beat, taking her in with his hungry eyes, burning her image onto a canvass in his memory palace. "Everything is going to be okay Lisbon, I promise." He squeezed her hand, "I won't let anything happen to you."

Lisbon gave him a questioning look but before she could say anything he was off the couch again and began to walk upstairs.

xxxxxxx

After another restless night Lisbon woke up the next morning eager to get out of the house. Fortunately for her, Alex Waltham had called the CBI, wanting to talk more about the two victims. Unfortunately for her though, Jane had insisted on coming along. Lisbon usually welcomed his input but today however, she would have greatly preferred him to just stay behind on the couch in her office.

The two of them took Lisbon's car and drove up to the Waltham residence. After they got out of the vehicle they began to walk up to the front door. "Let me do the talking today okay." She told Jane quietly.

"What, you don't trust me?" He asked.

"Oh let's not do this again," She said, "Jane, Alex's father is rich and well connected, we don't want to rattle him."

"You give me far little credit Lisbon," he protested but Lisbon merely rolled her eyes.

"Please." She said as they arrived at the front door. Lisbon reached out and rang the bell and the two of them waited until Mr Waltham opened the door.

"Mr Waltham? I'm agent Teresa Lisbon and this is Patrick Jane. We're with the California Bureau of Investigation." She told him as she showed him her badge.

"Oh yes, agent Lisbon. We've been expecting you." He showed them inside, closing the door behind them.

"My daughter will be down in a minute," he told her as he led them into the living room and asked them to sit down. "If you're going to be speaking to her I will have to sit in, you understand." He told her. His voice was very matter-of-fact but his eyes smiled at her.

"Yes, off course Mr Waltham." Lisbon agreed.

"Please, call me Jeff." He said, "Can I get you a drink; scotch, gin?"

"No, thank you. We're on duty." Lisbon informed him.

"Soft drink then?" He asked.

"I'm fine," she replied and just as he was about to sit down Jane said, "a cup of tea will be great."

Lisbon gave him a warning look, to which he just shrugged in response.

Jeff Waltham stood up once more and called his butler over, "Henry, would you please make Mr Jane some tea?"

"Certainly sir," the butler said and then turned towards Jane, "would you prefer Oolong, Peppermint, Darjeeling or Earl Grey Mr Jane?"

"Earl Grey." Jane said, to which the butler nodded and walked out of the room. Jane faced Lisbon, raising his eyebrows in approval but Lisbon merely shook her head.

Sitting back down again, Jeff Waltham cast his gaze back to the female agent opposite him. Jane noted, with annoyance, the not-so-surreptitious way he was ogling his partner. He looked at Lisbon and saw that she had noticed too but was being too polite to say anything. _Sleaze bag! _He thought but held his tongue for Lisbon's sake.

Just then, Alex Waltham entered the room, smiling as she saw the female agent. Lisbon stood to shake the girl's proffered hand. "Agent Lisbon, it's good to see you again." She then turned towards Jane who now also standing.

"Hello Alex." Lisbon greeted, "This is Patrick Jane, he's a consultant."

"Nice to meet you mister Jane," she said as she shook his hand.

"Likewise. You have excellent manners, if you don't mind my saying so." He told her, smiling.

Alex blushed, "Thank you mister Jane." She then gestured for everyone to sit down as she took a seat next to her father.

"You said you wanted to tell us more about Callum and Stacey?" Lisbon asked, taking her notepad out.

"Yes," Alex began, "I heard that you think that Leighton may have killed them?" She asked.

"Does that surprise you?" Lisbon asked.

Alex took a breath then. "A...a little I guess. I mean he was always kinda off, but killing? I don't know. He never seemed strong enough to do that. He was a geek, you know?"

Lisbon nodded, "We hear that he and Stacey Richards were involved."

Alex suddenly burst out into a small bout of laughter.

"What's so funny?" Lisbon asked.

"Leighton and _Stacey?_" She said, as she calmed down, "Never in a million years! I'm sure he liked her but she was _so_ not interested in him. She liked athletics guys, Jocks, you know? Leighton was so not her type." She paused then and Jane caught it.

"You just thought of something." He told her, causing her pupils to dilate in realization.

"It's...nothing. Really."

"Alex," her father began, "if you know something you should tell them."

Alex paused for a moment. "I just...I think Stacey might have been into Callum. I've seen the way she would look at him sometimes, but I don't know if they ever hooked up. Like I told you before, I never really spent that much time around them. I'd mostly just talk to Callum. He was cool."

"Was Leighton the jealous type? Violent?" She asked.

"I don't know, maybe."

While Lisbon continued to question Alex, Jane's attention had wandered back to Jeff Waltham. He had read his file before coming out to the house. He learned that he was a single parent. His wife had divorced him for having an affair with their housekeeper. He leaned back into the cushions and watched the man. On the surface Waltham appeared to be a nice, friendly, respectable guy but the longer Jane observed him the more information he gleaned. He noted the self-important way he held himself, it was clear he was used to being in charge, comfortable with his own authority. He was a self-made man, coming from humble beginnings in Wisconsin, now a multi-millionaire. His eyes locked onto the way he was looking at Lisbon. While she was busy speaking to his daughter, the man would look his partner up and down; at her legs, her breasts; it made Jane's blood boil. He felt his fists clench forcefully at his sides, his jaw following suit. His body began to tremble as anger and jealously began to take hold, turning his mind into a dark, murky pool for his thoughts to swim in. He stared daggers at the man, imagining what it would be like to hit him hard in the face, to punish him for treating her with such disrespect. She was _his _Lisbon. His.

"Is something the matter mister Jane?" Jeff Waltham suddenly asked, startling Jane out of his train of thought. "You're turning a bright shade of red, are you okay?"

Lisbon stopped talking and looked over to her consultant, noticing how his face had flushed. "Jane?" she asked.

Jane had to clear his throat a couple of times before he could speak, his mouth having gone dry. "I'm fine," he told them and then stood up. "I think we should go."

xxxxxxx

Later that evening Jane stood by the window in his attic at the CBI, staring out at the night. Lisbon and the others had gone home a few hours ago. As he gazed up at the moon his thoughts kept going back to that afternoon and Jeff Waltham. He had done his best to put it out of his mind, to focus on the case or anything else but try as he might he just could not let this go. He picked up the cup of chamomile tea from the desk to his left and took a sip, hoping it would calm him down. His body was still trembling, in spite of all his biofeedback techniques. When his legs felt like they were about to give way he moved toward his makeshift bed and sat down, taking a few deep breaths. He took the case file which was lying next to him and began to read. He looked at the picture of Leighton Cruz, lying at the bottom of the staircase, covered in his own blood and his heart went out to him. Jane found that he didn't believe this boy had killed his friends. He couldn't explain it, it was just a feeling at the back of his mind. The thought of Leighton made his mind jump to the morning of his death. He still couldn't remember everything that had happened that day but he did know that Leighton was in the room with him. He remembered talking to him and thinking that the boy, although troubled, was basically a good person. He also remembered asking him about Callum, but then everything was fuzzy after that. Jane put the file down and stood up again. He walked over to the window and looked out at all the little lights from the buildings in the distance. He wondered what Lisbon was doing at that moment, he missed her. Staying at her place the last few days had made him happy, happier than he'd felt in a long time but he didn't know why. _Denial_, a little voice at the back of his mind whispered but Jane quickly shook it off. He tried to focus his mind on more constructive things but to no avail. No matter what he did, his thoughts always returned to her. He glanced back at the file, remembering how Alex Waltham had said that Leighton had a thing for Stacey. _The things we do for love, _the little voice in his mind whispered again, and suddenly Jane had an epiphany.

Lisbon sat on her sofa that night, unable to sleep. She had opened a bottle of wine and was engrossed in Leighton Cruz's journal. She had been sitting there for over an hour when she heard the doorbell ring. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she saw that it was almost eleven-thirty and decided to ignore it. A few seconds later however the doorbell rang again, only this time it was accompanied by a male voice calling her name. "Lisbon. Lisbon open the door, it's me. I know you're awake, I can see the light on."

Lisbon rolled her eyes and reluctantly got up from the couch to answer the door. "Jane," she whined, "what are you doing here?"

"Can I come in?" he asked. "It's raining out here."

She nodded and opened the door wider for him to enter. He smiled his thanks as he shook the water off his curls with his hand. "What's so important that it can't wait till the morning?" She asked impatiently.

He looked at her, noting that she had changed into her football jersey. "Do you have something warm to wear?" He asked. "A warm coat or something?"

She looked at him askance. "Jane, what are you talking about?"

"A warm coat." He repeated. "Do you have one?"

Lisbon shook her head. "Yeah, it's in the closet."

"Good. Wait here a second." He told her and then ran upstairs. When he came back down a couple of minutes later he was carrying a black winter coat in his arms. "Put this on, quickly." He instructed.

"Why?" She asked, "Jane, what the hell is going on?"

He stood in front of her, gazing into her eyes, "Shhh, shhh. It's okay Lisbon, everything's going to be okay. Please, just put the coat on now." His voice had grown soft, comforting.

Lisbon did as he asked. "Okay."

Jane smiled, "Good. You know you shouldn't be up this late, you could get called out to a case at any ungodly hour, you need your sleep." He told her, "Are you feeling sleepy Lisbon?"

"A little," she replied, her voice had grown soft too.

Jane nodded in satisfaction, "Yes, you can feel it can't you? You can feel the sleep slowly creep up your body, into your mind. Your muscles are starting to relax as you feel all the tension drain from your body. Do you feel that?"

"Yes," she whispered, her eyes half closed.

"Why don't you go to sleep now? Just close your eyes and fall into a deep sleep Lisbon."

Lisbon felt the strength in her body begin to fade as her legs gave way and she fell forward. The last thing she remembered was the feeling of Jane's arms encircling her and the warmth of his body against hers before everything faded into darkness.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thank you to all the wonderful reviewers of the last chapter and especially to all my guest reviewers to whom I cannot thank personally. Your support always means a lot to me and always makes me smile.

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

Jane stood there in Lisbon's living room holding her in his arms for a moment, waiting until he was sure she had fallen asleep. Once he could feel her breathing become shallow and calm he picked her up and carried her toward the sofa. Once there, he carefully set her down on the cushions before walking toward the front door. He opened the door and picked up the small suitcase he had left there, hidden from view. He silently closed the door and made his way upstairs and into Lisbon's bedroom. When he had been up to get her coat before he had also taken out a few items of clothing and set them on the bed. He now carefully packed them all up into the suitcase and when he was done he quietly walked back down the stairs but just as he passed the couch he noticed her phone and the journal she had been reading for the case. He set the suitcase down and picked them both up off the coffee table and then carried them and the suitcase outside toward his car. He opened the trunk of the blue Citroen and placed her suitcase neatly beside his. Closing the trunk then, he walked round the car, opening the passenger side door. He threw the journal onto the back seat and then turned and went back inside for his passenger. As he moved toward her sleeping form, he felt a wave of tenderness touch his heart. He stood there a moment a looked at the woman he had come to rely on for so many years. She was beautiful. He bent down and brushed the side of her face with his hand. "I'll keep you safe my love." He whispered and then scooped her slowly into his arms as he lifted her off the couch and carried her out to the car. Once she was safely in place, he fastened her seatbelt and walked round to the driver's side. He closed the door and started the engine, looking over at the sleeping woman beside him. He had put her into a deep sleep so any noise wouldn't wake her. She would sleep until he woke her.

A couple of hours later they had arrived at their destination. Jane parked the car and then got out and walked over to the cabin he had rented and opened the door. He then went back for Lisbon, carefully unbuckled the seatbelt and picked her up and out of the car. Once he had taken her inside he placed her gently onto the couch in the living room. After he had brought both their suitcases and the journal inside he closed the door and lit the fireplace. As the room began to warm he finally felt himself begin to relax a little. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out Lisbon's phone and set it to vibrate and then did the same with his own. He then went into the kitchen to make some tea.

xxxxxxxxx

At CBI headquarters the next morning Cho sat at his desk, waiting for Callum's parents to arrive. "You seen the boss today?" Rigsby asked him as he took a sip of his coffee.

"No, I haven't." Cho replied as he looked at his watch.

"She didn't call in?"

"No."

"Huh." Rigsby said, "That's not like her; you tried calling her cell?"

"Yes, she's not answering but she sent me a text saying she'll be late."

Just then another agent signaled to Cho that the parents had arrived and Cho asked him to direct them to Lisbon's office. Once the three of them were inside, Cho closed the door and gestured for them to sit on the couch while he pulled up a chair opposite them. He sat down, his hands clasped in front of him. "Mr and Mrs Stone, I'm very sorry for your loss." He began. "I was hoping you could tell me a little about your son, what kind of company he kept, do you know of anyone who would have wanted to harm him?"

Mrs Stone shook her head, "No, no I don't think so. He was a very popular boy, had many friends, everybody loved him."

"He was a good kid," his father added, "the kind of boy who would help you with your homework. He never got into trouble at school."

"What about outside school?" Cho asked, "We heard that he was hanging around with some questionable friends."

"You mean those two boys, what were their names?" she asked her husband.

"Montgomery and Cruz, yeah, we warned him to stay away from them." Mr Stone told Cho who nodded.

"We've heard that they were at your house the night your son was killed. Do you think one of them could have killed him?"

Mr Stone shook his head but his wife had other thoughts, "Yes. They were both trouble; into dark things, like vampires and blood rituals. I once saw that Cruz boy carry a knife on him."

"When was this?" Cho asked.

"One time when my husband was working late they came round to the house, him and that Montgomery boy. They wanted to talk to Callum about something, at first I didn't think it was a good idea. Those two were always wearing black cloths with satanic pictures and slogans and they never smiled. But then I thought that maybe this was just some teenage phase, you know, so I allowed Callum to have them over. I try not to judge, but...as a mother, you worry for your children."

"Sure," Cho said.

"They had come over a few times before and were usually quiet, kept to themselves, but this one time I was going upstairs when I saw the bathroom door half closed and when I went inside I saw Cruz sitting on my bathtub with a knife in his hand."

"What was he doing?" Cho asked.

"I think he was trying to cut himself." She whispered.

"Honey, you never told me about this!" Her husband said.

She turned to face him, "I..I was just so shocked...I just didn't expect that." She paused, "I was also a little bit scared that he might hurt me."

"What about his other friends, Stacey Richards and Brian Colby?"

"They're good kids." Mr Stone said. "Always well mannered and so polite. Good influence." He paused and looked at Cho, "I understand that Stacey was found...dead as well." His voice had grow softer. Cho nodded. "One thing I didn't understand was how kids like that could be friends with those other two."

"Was there ever any arguments between them?" Cho asked.

"The usual teenage stuff. I think Stacey had a little crush on Callum," Mr Stone told him. "I know that Cruz didn't like that. Stacey was going out with my son and I could see the...evil looks he would give Callum when she wasn't looking."

"You saw them argue?"

"Heard it." He corrected, "One time, they were leaving the house when I heard Cruz threaten my son. He said 'your blood is mine.' I remember that 'cos it freaked me out. I mean, Cruz was into all that vampire stuff. That was about a week ago. I told Callum that I didn't want him to invite them over after that."

At that moment, Van Pelt poked her head thorough the door. Cho turned to her and nodded. Rising to his feet he offered his hand to both the parents, thanking them for their time. After they had gone he turned to Van Pelt who was holding a piece of paper in her hand. "Is that the coroner's report?" He asked.

"Yeah," she replied. "I read over it but it doesn't add up."

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"All this time we've been thinking that Stacey Richards was killed as part of some kind of satanic ritual?"

"Her throat was slit and her hands and feet were bound." Cho confirmed.

"Yeah, but according to the report, the official cause of death...was a gun shot wound to the chest. Someone had taken the trouble to sew the wound up. Her throat was cut perimortem."

"So she was shot...and then her throat was slit? Why?"

"I don't know but someone went out of their way to make it look like it was part of some kind of ritual."

"It puts a whole different complexion on things." Cho said, crossing his arms in thought.

"And get this, the coroner puts the time of death at around the same time that the first victim was killed. That means it happened at that party. Someone must have seen something."

"We have to find the other boy that was there. We need to track down Brian Colby."

xxxxxxx

Jane was in the middle of drinking his tea when he heard Lisbon's cell phone vibrate. He reluctantly put down his cup, picked up the phone and glanced at the caller ID; it was Cho. Sighing, he answered it. "Cho," he said.

"Jane?" Cho replied, surprised. "What are you doing answering Lisbon's phone?"

"I'm at her house. Lisbon called me, said she wasn't feeling too good and asked me if I could give her a lift to work, but when I got here she was about ten seconds from passing out. I think she may have caught my bug."

"That's too bad. Is she okay?" He asked, concerned.

"She'll be fine with plenty of rest but she will be off work for a few days. I'm going to stay and keep an eye on her today."

"Okay, but we'll need you back here tomorrow."

"No problem," he said and then hung up. He tossed the phone into an armchair and looked at Lisbon as he finished his tea, satisfied that they would not be disturbed for a while. When he had finished drink, he set his cup down on the end table nearby and moved slowly to his partner. He reached out and stroked her head. "Lisbon," he whispered and then tapped her shoulder, "Lisbon, time to wake up."

After a second or two she began to stir. "Jane?" she said, her voice soft.

"I'm here, it's okay, you're safe, open your eyes Lisbon, wake up."

Lisbon blinked several times as her eyes began to focus, it took her mind a little bit longer to catch up and when it did she looked at him in confusion. "Jane what happened?" She realized that she was lying down and immediately sat upright on the couch. "Where are we? What are we doing here?"

"Shhh shhh, it's okay. I rented us a cabin to stay in for a while, until everything blows over."

"Jane what are you talking about? How did I get here? The last thing I remember was...being in my apartment. You came to visit, said you wanted me to get my coat and then...and then…"

"You fell asleep." He said.

"Why are we here? Why did you bring me here? What do you mean until everything blows over?"

"It's not good for you to get so worked up. Let me make you a cup of tea."

"Answer me Jane. Why are we here?"

Jane was a little taken back by her tone of voice. "There's a dangerous killer out there, it's not safe."

"So you brought me here, to keep me safe? Newsflash Jane, that's our job! We see dangerous killers everyday. What's going on with you?"

"Nothing," he replied.

Lisbon got up off the couch, "So you kidnapped me? How did you get me to…" Lisbon's eyes widened in sudden realization and she looked directly at him, shock and horror clearly written on her face. "You hypnotized me didn't you?"

Jane was now also standing. He thought about fabricating some elaborate reason as to why he did it but when he looked into her eyes he thought better off it. "Yes," He said.

"You son of a bitch!" She spat, mortified at the breach of trust and she began to walk towards the door.

Jane felt his heart rate increase and his body began to tremble. "Lisbon," he called and he moved after her, managing to catch hold of her arm before she made it to the door. "Don't leave, please, just stay with me for a few days, let me look after you, let me keep you safe."

She turned to face him, her breath coming in rapid puffs, anger and betrayal coursing through her like a storm in her blood. His face had grown pale, taking on a somewhat gaunt quality which sent a sliver of concern up her spine. He had taken her here against her will, kidnapped her and now he was pleading with her to stay, as if some terrible danger awaited her the moment she stepped outside. She studied his face and for a moment she wondered if he had actually gone insane. He was visibly shaking now and there was a sheen of perspiration on his forehead. "Let go of me Jane!" She ordered but he held on.

"Please just hear….hear me out."

She shook her arm free but as she turned to leave Jane's legs were starting to become weak and he slowly fell to the floor. "Jane?" Lisbon said, the concern rapidly replacing any animosity she was feeling. "Jane are you hypoglycemic?" She moved to his side, grabbing onto his arms.

He shook his head, "N..no." He replied.

"Jane!" Lisbon's pulse was racing now as she searched her pockets for her phone. "We need to call an ambulance."

"No!" He insisted, "No doctors."

"Jane we need to…"

"No, please." He looked into her eyes, "Liissbon."

"Jane what's happening to you?" Her voice was unsteady, her mind filling with panic as she watched helplessly as he sat there, trembling in her arms.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks to everyone for all the lovely reviews of the last chapter - here's chapter 6.

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Mentalist.**

Lisbon reluctantly let go of him and stood up to search her pockets again. "What are you doing?" Jane asked, still trembling as he sat on the floor.

"I'm trying to find my phone. Did you take it?" She asked.

"I told you no doctors." He insisted. "L..Lisbon, help me up." He held out an arm to her and she took it, then held onto his other arm as she lifted him into a standing position, careful to support him on his wobbly legs. "I know what will help. Please help me to the bathroom?"

Lisbon gave him a skeptical look but did as he asked. She was thankful that there were no stairs to climb; she wasn't sure if Jane would be able to handle them. They reached the bathroom but just as Lisbon was about to help him inside he stopped and looked at her. "I'll be alright. I have what I need in here, just wait outside okay?"

Lisbon was caught between her concern for him and wanting to know what was wrong and his need for privacy. She silently nodded and let him go inside, but before he closed the door he turned around to her and gave her the best smile he could manage. "Thanks."

"I'll wait for you in the living room." She said and watched as the door closed.

Twenty minutes later, Lisbon was still sitting in an armchair waiting for him. Her eyes were starting to close when she heard the bathroom door open. A few seconds later Jane appeared in the living room. Lisbon noticed that the color had come back to his face and he had stopped shaking. "Hey," she said but it came out as a whisper, "you feeling better?" She tried to smile but didn't quite succeed. Jane spotted the fear and concern underneath.

He too attempted to smile, trying to mask the embarrassment he felt at letting her see him that way. "I'm fine," he told her as he walked over to the couch. Lisbon couldn't help but notice the way he winced when he sat down.

"You sure?" She asked.

"Uh huh." He found that he couldn't meet her eyes. "Just need to rest for a while, that's all." He forced himself to look up, to look at her. "Will you stay?"

Lisbon rolled her eyes and sighed, "Well I can't leave you like this." She paused, "Jane, what's going on with you?"

His eyes fell to the floor once more. He took a breath before saying, "I...I don't know Lisbon." His voice was hoarse, laced with a mixture of pain and fear.

Lisbon's eyes began to tear up slightly at the pitiful sight of her close friend and colleague, slumped on the couch, unable to meet her eyes. "Jane…" she began reluctantly, "we're friends right? You know you can trust me?"

Jane nodded.

"Then I want you to be honest with me," she paused, watching his response, "are you doing drugs?"

Jane's eyes grew wide in surprise at her question. "Lisbon...no! I'm not doing drugs."

Lisbon wasn't very convinced. "Jane," she said, "I've been a cop a long time, and what you've been going through kinda looks like a withdrawal."

"I'm not doing drugs." He repeated.

Lisbon leaned forward in her chair, "Then what _is _going on with you?"

"I don't know."

"You're acting like an addict, Jane I want to help you but you have to trust me."

He looked at her once more, taking a deep breath as he did so. He knew then he had no choice, he could no longer deny what he was feeling. "Lisbon," he began, "there's something I need to tell you."

xxxxx

"Hey Cho, come look at this." Rigsby said as he stared at his computer screen at the CBI.

"What is it?" The more senior agent asked as he walked over and peered over Rigsby's shoulder.

"It's a missing person's flyer for a Brian Colby. An officer from Sac PD just emailed it to me, apparently these are up all over town. That's the kid we're looking for isn't it?"

"Yes; we have any luck tracking down his parents yet?"

Rigsby nodded his head, "Alex Waltham gave us the address of his mother, apparently his father walked out on them a year ago, no one knows where he is. We've been trying to get in touch with Mrs Colby but so far she hasn't responded."

"She has now!" Van Pelt said, a triumphant smile on her face. "I just got off the phone with her, she's expecting us to pay her a visit."

"Good work. You're with me." He told her and the two of them left for the Colby residence.

When they arrived, Mrs Colby invited them inside. Once they entered the living room and Mrs Colby sat down and looked at them, it was evident that she had been crying. "We realize that this is a tough time for you Mrs Colby," Cho began, "but we need to ask you some questions about your son."

Mrs Colby nodded. "I understand, and please call me Janet."

"Janet," Van Pelt began, "how well did your son know Callum Stone?"

"That's the boy that died?" She asked, "It was on the news."

Van Pelt nodded.

"Brian might have mentioned him a few times in passing I think, he never really talked about his friends to me. He was very quiet, secretive about things like that. He's been that way ever since his father left."

"It's just you and your son here?" Cho asked and she nodded.

"He sometimes has another boy over, they're like best friends, but other than that, yeah, just me and him."

"This other boy, could you describe him for me?" Van Pelt asked.

Janet Colby thought about it for a moment, "Short dark hair, thin build, piercing eyes, it's like he would look at you and see right into your soul. It was a little creepy to be honest but he seemed like a good boy. I think he's having trouble at home, that's why he stayed here sometimes." She lowered her voice then, "I think maybe his parents are abusing him."

"Why do you say that?" Cho asked.

"Well he has cuts all over his arms. I saw them once, when he was here."

Cho and Van Pelt exchanged knowing looks. "Sounds like Leighton Cruz." Van Pelt said and Cho nodded.

"Ma'am, this may sound like a strange question but was your son involved in any unusual hobbies?"

Janet Colby frowned, "What do you mean unusual?" she asked.

"We have it on good authority that your son's friend was into the occult." Cho clarified.

"What do you mean _was_?" She asked.

"I'm afraid he's dead too," Van Pelt informed her, "he was found in the same house as Callum Stone, we're told there was a party there two nights ago and that your son was a guest."

"That's right, he did go to that party."

"What time did he get back?" Cho asked.

"I don't know but it must have been after eleven," she looked at the two agents, a somewhat guilty look on her face. "I have a really early start in the mornings, but I trust my son, agents. I saw him the next morning; it must have been around five-thirty, I was getting reading to go to work. He was sitting right here," she patted the cushion next to her, "reading. I said goodbye to him and then left. That's the last I saw of him. I tried calling him but he doesn't answer...I'm afraid something's happened to him."

"Has he ever disappeared like this before?"

She shook her head. "No, he would never just leave without telling me." She paused a beat and then turned to Cho, "And to answer your question agent, no my boy is not into the occult...but…"

"But what?" Cho asked.

"He is interested in mind control."

"Mind control?" Van Pelt raised her eyebrows at that.

"Yeah, you know like controlling your impulses with positive thinking and suggestions. He started taking an interest when he learned of his father's gambling problem. He tried to help him beat his addiction but that man was just too damn stubborn!"

Van Pelt turned to Cho and sighed, "Mind control. You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Cho nodded. "We need Jane."

xxxxx

Both Jane and Lisbon sat in silence in the living room, facing each other but neither making eye contact. It was Lisbon who finally spoke. "So…you're telling me that you're…" she shook her head incredulously, "becoming a vampire?"

Jane smirked a little, "No." He told her, "There's no such thing as vampires."

"But you…you're…you said you…"

"Craving blood, yes." He paused and rubbed his forehead, "I…can't explain it."

"How long?" she asked.

"No long, it…just happened suddenly. Around the time I got sick I think."

"That incident with the broken glass." Lisbon looked at her finger and then back up at Jane. "Did you…"

"No, that was a complete accident Lisbon." He finished her thought, "I would never hurt you, not intentionally."

"Are you trying to say that you subconsciously did it…to taste my blood?"

He could see the fear in her eyes and it made him sick inside. "No, Lisbon, that's not how it was. My hand was trembling and I dropped the glass…." He paused, "Then I saw the blood…your blood and I just had this urge to taste it. Like I was drawn to it somehow. It was just pure instinct."

"Instinct?" she asked, trying not to sound disgusted. "Jane have you lost your mind?"

"I know how this looks and I know how this sounds but I can't help it Lisbon."

"And the trembling?" She asked, although she was not really sure she wanted to know the answer.

"That started around the same time too…" He paused, wondering if he should say any more.

"What?" She asked, noticing his internal debate. "What is it Jane?" Her voice had softened now.

"When…when I tasted your blood, I realized that my hand had stopped shaking. At first I didn't link the two but then when I cut my lip…my body had started trembling again but when I tasted the blood the trembling stopped. It was then I realized…" He cast his eyes to the floor, shame and embarrassment taking hold of him. "It was what I needed."

Lisbon stood up and walked over to the window. "Okay," she said, staring up at the sky.

Jane turned to her, "Okay?" He repeated.

She turned around to face him, "Well what else do you want me to say Jane? There is obviously something wrong with you. We need to take you to a doctor."

Jane stood up quickly then, but the light-headedness he felt as a result made him instantly regret it. He walked over to her, his face set in a grimace. "I told you, no doctors."

"Jane this isn't natural. Something's happening to you and it's obviously hurting you."

His eyes widened at that. "How did you know?" He asked, his voice a whisper now.

"It's written all over your face." She reached out to hold his arm but he flinched at her touch.

A flicker of hurt crossed her face at his response until she realized that his reaction was due to physical pain. With tears in her eyes she looked into his. "Jane." She whispered as she tenderly took his hand and lifted it. She unbuttoned the cuff of his shirt and slowly pulled up his sleeve. Her eyes trailed along the length of his forearm taking in everything her mind wasn't quite ready to process." She looked up at him with questioning eyes, a tear escaping from its emerald home, rolling down her cheek. "Please tell me this isn't what I think this is."

Jane looked down at the recently scarred landscape of his exposed arm and he felt his own tears threatening to fall. He glanced up at Lisbon but his mouth refused to form words. Instead he pulled his arm from her and began to turn away but as it fell she caught his hand and held on tight, refusing to let him leave.

"Jane, I'm scared. I'm scared I might lose you to this." She told him.

He turned back to her. "You won't lose me Lisbon, I'm here." As he said the last part of that sentence he moved their joined hands over his heart. "No matter what else changes, I want you to know that I will never let any harm come to you."

Lisbon was at once both touched and confused at his words. "Why do you keep talking like that?"

"Like what?" He asked.

"You keep saying you have to keep me safe. Safe from what, what's going on? Is this about Red John? You know something don't you? Damn it Jane, just tell me what's going on!"

He looked into her eyes and smiled calmly. "This isn't about Red John, although he is a real danger. There is all kinds of evil out there. You're the only good thing in my life," He squeezed her hand then, "I won't let anything happen to you."

She swallowed back a tidal wave of emotion, her heart was beating faster in her chest. "Jane," she began, squeezing his hand back. "I want to keep you safe too. You need help."

He shook his head. "I don't care about what happens to me as long as you're safe." He replied. He moved closer and reached out with his free hand to cup her face, brushing away the tears with his thumb. "As long as you're safe that's all that matters." He whispered.

"That's not all that matters," Lisbon countered, also whispering. "You matter too. You matter to me."

Upon hearing those words all rational thought abandoned his mind and before he could stop himself he closed the distance between them and his lips tenderly brushed hers. He pulled back to see her stunned expression quickly soften; affection and longing lighting up her eyes. It was all the encouragement he needed as he leaned in again and pressed his lips to hers, rejoicing as she reciprocated. He pulled her closer as the two of them enveloped themselves in the intensity of the moment.

They were so caught up in each other that they didn't even hear Jane's phone ring several times….


End file.
